The Dallas Stars kicked off their season with a win and handed the Nashville Predators their first loss of the season in their home opener. Mason Marchment recorded two goals and Jake Oettinger recorded 30 saves to help guide Dallas on their path to victory. Ryan Johansen was the only Predator able to find the back of the net as Nashville looked like anything but their “Smashville” nickname Thursday night.

STARS SHINE IN NASHVILLE

Three Dallas players combined for four goals. As I mentioned, Marchment found the back of the net twice; while rookie Wyatt Johnson and Joe Pavelski also scored for Dallas. Meanwhile, Tyler Seguin added three assists for the Stars in the season opener. That last stat is incredibly important because it seems the Stars go the way Seguin goes. If Seguin is on, Dallas looks good. If Seguin is off, Dallas looks bad. He looked good Thursday night and is a big reason why Dallas is celebrating a victory.

Given the offseason Dallas had, they needed this opening game. It’s the first win for new head coach Peter DeBoer. You know he wanted to start his first season as the top guy in Dallas on the right foot, and he did just that. The fast start and the strong debut could mean good things for the 2020 Western Conference Champions who are looking to get back to the Stanley Cup Final in a year not affected by COVID.

PREDATORS PROBLEMS

While the Stars were shining, Nashville was nowhere close to being a predator. Johansen’s goal came in the third period while the Preds were already down four goals. The Predators looked like they were sleepwalking through much of the game, and Nashville’s coaching staff said they didn’t see the what they were expecting. After the game, Coach John Hynes said, “I thought the guys put the effort in, but we just didn’t have the juice we normally play with.”

The players were also very open with their disappointment with the result. Johansen said, “It stinks right now, but there’s a lot of hockey left, and we’ll be better, and we need to be better.” It was Nashville’s first game since sweeping two games from the San Jose Sharks in Prague last week. I don’t know if it was rust from too many days off, or exhaustion from travel, but I’m betting the Predators will come out better in their next game.

PENALTY KILL PROWESS

The Stars nave not allowed Nashville to score on a power play in their last eight matchups. That state completely blew my mind when I read it. Nashville had five power play opportunities Thursday night, and Dallas was a perfect five for five in killing them off. Dallas has killed off 23 power play opportunities in those eight matchups. It’s clear Dallas has the advantage in these matchups, and that’s something Nashville needs to improve upon.

NEXT UP? A REMATCH

These two teams will square off again Saturday in Dallas. It will be the home opener for the Stars while the Predators will clearly look to rebound following the disappointing loss. Plus, since Dallas played spoiler for Nashville, the Predators will want to play spoiler for the Stars. I’m still predicting a Stars win, but it should be fun.

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